Chapter 83: Dao Foundation and Aptitude—The Unfairness Inherent in Cultivation

Cao Xuan responded with an “oh,” and followed Yu Wan inside, as he truly had many questions about cultivation. Li Yao grinned, preparing to follow as well.

Bang—the door closed automatically.

“Hey, Master, I haven’t gone in yet!” Li Yao knocked on the door.

“You’ve been quite lax in your cultivation this past month. Now even your junior brother has surpassed you in cultivation. Shouldn’t you hurry to seclude yourself for training?” came the reply.

Li Yao pouted, muttering under her breath, “How can I compete with junior brother?”

Then, Yu Wan’s emotionless voice sounded again from inside the cabin: “If you don’t cultivate properly, you’ll remain the junior sister, and Cao Xuan will be the senior brother!”

“No, wait!” Li Yao jolted in alarm and hurried into her own cabin, poking her head out to add, “I’m going to train now, Master! Don’t play favorites!”

However, a restrictive barrier had already risen in Yu Wan’s room, making it impossible for sound to travel in or out.

…

Yu Wan, her graceful figure undiminished over the years, sat cross-legged on the bed, while Cao Xuan found a nearby meditation cushion and sat attentively.

“This time, I must admit my negligence as your master. I never expected you to reach the peak of Foundation Establishment so quickly!”

Although there was only a slim gap between late Foundation Establishment and its peak, this barrier was the most critical bottleneck before the Golden Core stage.

Because previously, one’s cultivation mainly involved refining spiritual energy into true essence. Yet, the Dao Foundation within was like a shell—constructed, but not yet furnished.

Those with great talent could be likened to a luxury apartment, ready to move in, their essence and spirit refined, advancing smoothly to the Foundation peak. But those less gifted were like a bare room, requiring extensive work to enhance their essence and spirit—a process that could be lengthy.

Some might even spend a hundred years refining this stage, which attests to its difficulty.

In Yu Wan’s view, while Cao Xuan wasn’t exactly a “bare room,” his time reaching Foundation Establishment had been so short that she hadn’t expected him to break through to the peak so quickly.

Over the next period, Yu Wan, as his master, carefully explained the intricacies of the Dao Foundation, including the relationship between essence, energy, and spirit.

“So, the Dao Foundation requires the unity of essence, energy, and spirit. But how does one enhance essence and spirit?” Cao Xuan, having used a Foundation Cultivation Pill, had some notions, but Yu Wan’s confirmation was invaluable.

Yu Wan nodded at his question. Early Foundation peak cultivators often struggled with this. She herself understood the impatience of reaching the peak yet finding the Dao Foundation stubbornly unmoved toward the Golden Core. Only in recent years, as her essence and spirit approached harmony, did that feeling lessen.

“A good question. Let’s start with essence.” She pointed at her lower abdomen. “Essence is, in fact, a manifestation of the physical body.”

“In the Qi Refining stage, through spiritual energy and true essence, you must have noticed your body’s growing strength.”

“That’s why, after breaking through to Foundation Establishment, our lifespan extends to two centuries.”

Cao Xuan nodded, feeling that deeply. The sense of his life’s fundamental transformation upon his breakthrough remained vivid even now.

Yu Wan gathered a wisp of true essence, gently brushing it from her neck downward.

“Refining the body with true essence—it’s not something you expected, is it?”

“Of course, this is just the simplest application,” she continued. “In fact, when channeling the ‘Rune Cloud Sutra,’ after refining spiritual energy into true essence, you can guide it into your body to enhance your ‘essence.’”

A revelation dawned on Cao Xuan. Indeed, who said cultivators couldn’t temper the body?

Yu Wan’s cheeks flushed slightly. “Actually, I’ve observed you and Yao’er’s training methods. That, too, is an excellent way to refine essence.”

Cao Xuan froze for a moment, scratching his head in embarrassment. Did Master really have to spy on their ‘real combat practice’?

Yu Wan quickly composed herself and continued, “As for ‘spirit,’ that’s more complicated.”

She sighed. “When you broke through Foundation Establishment, you also gained spiritual awareness.”

“And as your strength grows, so does your spiritual sense.”

Cao Xuan listened intently.

“In truth, ‘spirit’ is linked to the spiritual root. A powerful spiritual root strengthens your spiritual awareness even without deliberate cultivation.”

With a wave of her right hand, she formed a miniature likeness of herself from spiritual energy, pointing to its forehead.

“While the spiritual root draws in spiritual energy, it also reinforces our spiritual sense. The stronger the root, the higher the refining efficiency.”

Yu Wan sighed. “So, when you find your true essence has reached a bottleneck and can’t advance, don’t be anxious.”

“Continue absorbing the world’s spiritual energy to temper your spiritual root and enhance your spirit. The excess true essence can be used to temper the body, thus refining essence along the way.”

She did not elaborate on the hardest part—when essence had been refined but the spirit lagged behind. That was the most grueling stage, for in seclusion, there would be no perceptible progress: true essence and essence would not increase, while spiritual sense remained elusive and unquantifiable.

Yu Wan herself had glimpsed a chance to break through to Golden Core, but the other peak masters were still struggling at the Foundation peak, uncertain of their progress.

“Our goal this time, the Azure Clouds Mist Cave, actually serves to simultaneously improve essence, energy, and spirit. It was crafted at great cost by the ancestor of the Central State Azure Clouds Sect, in collaboration with the Xuanhua Dao Sect.”

“If, after you secure a spot, you can achieve unity of essence, energy, and spirit, you may truly have a chance to break through to the Golden Core stage.”

Cao Xuan now had a profound understanding of the Foundation Establishment stage. He finally understood why the sect valued spiritual root aptitude so highly.

He realized that, if not for the Spirit Cleansing Pill that had elevated his spiritual root to nine reforgings, even the system’s rebates might not have allowed him to force his way to Foundation Establishment, nor would the sect master have sent the peak masters to take him as a disciple.

Subsequent cultivation would have been much harder. Even if he obtained a Foundation technique rivaling the ‘Heavenly Rune Codex’ through rebates, poor spiritual roots would have slowed his progress.

He couldn’t help but sigh, “The heavens are so unfair. The so-called Foundation Establishment is supposed to be about building a foundation, but in reality, it’s all about competing in innate talent.”

Yu Wan glanced at him—indeed, who among them didn’t envy his talent?

Yet compared to the Little Martial Uncle, everyone still fell far short.

In Yu Wan’s eyes, talent and aptitude were two different things; the Little Martial Uncle possessed both. Cao Xuan, too, had both, though his spiritual root was less impressive than his talent.

To Yu Wan, Cao Xuan’s talent far surpassed his spiritual root. In truth, she did not know that his talent was not particularly outstanding; it was merely the accumulation of two lifetimes simulated by the system.

“Thank you, Master, for resolving my doubts. I’ll take my leave now.”

Cao Xuan rose. Though he hadn’t gained knowledge about the Golden Core stage, his understanding of the Foundation stage had deepened; the trip was worthwhile.

“Ahem—wait!” Yu Wan, cheeks flushed red, suddenly called out.